chapter 2
Yvonne is two years older than me and is classmates with Zachary.
Our families have been close for generations.
I grew up playing with them.
In high school, they fell in love. By the time they graduated from college, they were ready to get engaged.
I had feelings for Zachary too, but I never thought of taking him from Yvonne.
No one expected a fire to break out at their home the night before the wedding.
I escaped through the window first, but Yvonne, trapped for too long, became a vegetative state.
Our family needed someone to maintain the alliance with the Stewart family, so they chose me.
Zachary didn't refuse.
After the wedding, he kept tormenting me.
But just now, when I was unconscious, I suddenly remembered what happened during the fire.
At first, Yvonne wanted to scare me, deliberately placing a burning fire basin at my door, letting the smoke fill my room.
To make it more realistic, she even deliberately poured gasoline outside my room.
But later, she got burned and knocked over the fire basin.
The flames quickly spread, setting the whole house on fire.
I was sleeping at the time, and by the time the smoke woke me up, the fire was already raging.
I didn't know she was outside, and with the door too hot to open, I had to quickly tear the bedsheet into strips and climb out the window.
In the end, I lost my grip, fell down, and passed out.
When I woke up again, my memory of the fire was completely blurry.
Everyone told me that Yvonne was trapped outside the room because she was trying to save me.
But I selfishly locked the door and escaped alone.
That wasn't my fault at all.
I'm clearly the victim.
I will never make any sacrifices again.
No matter what, I must leave Zachary.
The next day, the pet center delivered Max's ashes to the house.
I placed it properly, went out to buy a bouquet of lilies, and put them in a vase on the table.
Max used to love sleeping there, enjoying the scent of flowers.
I just arranged the flowers when a shadow appeared before me.
Zachary stared intently at the vase in my hands. "You know Yvonne loves lilies."
"You suddenly bought them today, are you trying to say you're atoning?"
"Don't think a few bouquets of flowers can erase the mistakes you've made. What you owe her, you'll never repay in this lifetime."
I used to feel guilty, used to feel sad.
But now, my heart feels nothing.
"The flowers were just a random purchase, you're overthinking," I said calmly.
His gaze froze for a moment, then he sneered, "Of course, someone as cold-blooded as you wouldn't have a shred of remorse."
I couldn't be bothered to argue with him.
After a while, he had someone deliver a long dress.
He said, "Wear this for tonight's anniversary party."
The dress was just long enough to cover the bruises on my knees.
Every year on this day, he would invite both our families and friends to a gathering.
In front of everyone, he was especially gentle with me.
Once the guests left, he dropped the facade and tortured me more cruelly.
I took the dress and walked into the bathroom with an indifferent expression to change.
Zachary stared at me, seemingly surprised by my calmness. "You're quite well-behaved today?"
Im really afraid of wearing dresses.
When I was fifteen, Yvonne and I were kidnapped.
A thug targeted me and tore at my skirt in front of everyone.
Although the police arrived in time and we were safely rescued, from that moment on, I carried a deep fear of "wearing skirts."
Zachary knows all of this.
But after we got married, his favorite thing was forcing me to wear all kinds of skirts, long and short.
He enjoyed watching my discomfort and fear, forcing me to beg him, only to reject me without hesitation.
I used to never dare refuse because, like him, I thought I needed to atone.
I also hoped that his impression of me would improve a bit because of this obedience.
However, it was useless.
Now, I no longer care about his opinion of me.
"The material and design of the dress are good. Share the shop with me," I said casually. "When I have time, I'll buy a few more."
Zachary's face suddenly darkened.
I didn't look at him and walked out of the room on my own.
At this moment, my phone received a text message: [Mr. Howard will take tonight's flight over, surgery in three days.]